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Matrix Dreams.

You may be familiar with how I use Write Steve Write as a personal journal in order to chronicle my progress, lack of progress, and inspiration when it comes to writing. Specifically when it comes to fine tuning my manuscript, Temporary, and its little brother, Shell.

I’ve set goals, missed goals, and hit goals during my time sharing all my wins and loses with those who care to read them and be a part of this long adventure, and I’m appreciative of everyone one of you who has taken the time to follow along.

For those of you who may be stumbling across this for the first time: Welcome!

If you’ve ever wondered what the process is like for someone with no industry contacts, and only a love of story to warm them during those long, cold nights, then you’ve come to the right place. You’ll be able to chart back every major turn and event I’ve taken with Temporary, right up until, hopefully, I’m able to blog about such incredibly positive things with Friends inspired titles like “The One Where I Get An Agent”, or “The One Where I’m Published and On An Awesome Book Tour, Please Come Meet Me!”.

It’s been a long while since I last tackled a rewrite of Temporary. Not because I didn’t want to, not because I was scared of it (…much…), and not because I didn’t believe in it. In that time I’ve been focused on Shell, which will hopefully become the little short that could, if it wins favour with The Book Smuggler‘s competition.

Since that’s finally crossed its finish line however, I’ve been able to refocus my efforts once more my manuscript in an effort to get it into shape fit enough to (and I’ll whisper this, so come a little closer…) send to literary agents in the hope of gaining representation.

Rewriting; honing. That, right now, is the short term goal.

It’s good to have goals. (So I’ve been told).

But it’s in this time away that I can finally see the obvious faults, failings and (word) flailing I’ve littered my script with. I can see the poor sentence structures I was so blinded to; I can unobjectively decry when a sentence/paragraph/page doesn’t make sense; I can hack swathes of my precious writing in a cold, calculated manner – in a way that was impossible to do a few months ago.

My attitude has been tempered in its time away, and so many elements I was previously unable to see or, worse, was perhaps unwilling to accept, are clearer to me in a way I haven’t enjoyed before.

It’s work, undoubtedly, but it’s fun to be able to go in a rip it apart. The pacing alone has already improved astronomically since its last redraft, and it’s entertaining in a frustrating way to reread sections you had previously thought were okay or, at least, read well. Which, on closer inspection, yeah, not so much at all….

All that matters is that I continue to improve it, cutting the chaff, and hopefully creating the tightest, most enjoyable version of the story that it can be. The next step though, for a guy who loves story and simply wants to share his, but has no industry links or contacts…ah, now that is the challenge.

Until then, though, I’m having a hell of a time revisiting my friends in Five Star City.

Have you ever been published before, especially if you had no previous industry knowledge or contacts? I’d love to hear from you or read about your journey, if you have it online to share!